From: Divorced From Justice
“Some divorce lawyers are known to mislead clients into believing they will go to trial and then, at the last minute, force the client into settlements. This manipulative pressuring to settle is something sprung on the client in the hallway of the court, after the lawyer schedules the court appearance and get the client there on the premise that she/he is going to her/his divorce trial.”
I’ve had this happen to myself and several clients that I have worked with. One lawyer I had was all talk about how we would, “show them in court.” He wasn’t happy and led me to believe that he was ready to defend me and my rights in front of a judge.
That all changed though when we went to court. We weren’t there 10 minutes when my lawyer walked up to me with an offer to settle from the opposing counsel. I wanted a trial because I wanted the judge to hear evidence and decide what he thought was fair. In the end I got a settlement pushed down my throat by a lawyer who was no longer talking tough about protecting my rights. According to him, it was the best we were going to get and going before the judge would only cost me more money in the end.
As it turned out, the settlement that I accepted that morning due to my lawyers reversal in attitude ended up costing me $19,200 in housing costs for myself and my children.
In my opinion, what really matters is not the best interest of the child or protecting a client’s rights. What really matters is that the lawyer collected his money for doing as little work as possible and the judge got the case cleared off his docket.
If you find yourself unable to come to an agreement with your spouse and you do have to schedule a court date be wary of those hallway settlements. You hire a lawyer to protect your interests but, you have to put pro-active energy into making sure those interests are truly protected.
How To Protect Yourself From A Forced Settlement: